Page 12 of Magic of Sins

I would have preferred to not talk to him and just get it over with, but I don’t want to show fear in front of him. If I don’t want to submit to him completely, I want to be prepared for what’s to come.

Caden places a hand on the napkin next to my plate and runs his long fingers over the white fabric.

“You won’t notice I’m doing it.”

“And how much do I have to eat for you to…”

“For me to be able to feed on you?” he adds. “Even though the sin is called gluttony, it’s not about the amount you eat. It’s about the fact that you eat even though you’re not hungry. It’s about the pleasure you get from it.”

“What if I don’t like it?”

The corner of his mouth twitches but I don’t know if in annoyance or amusement. I’m trying to stall, and he knows it.

“Then this is going to be an unpleasant dinner for both of us.”

I can live with that.

“Why do you want to feed on me, of all people?” I repeat the question I’ve already asked Ophelia since I never got an answer from her. There must be a reason why he asked for me.

“I saw you and wanted a taste of you,” Caden replies so bluntly that I lower my eyes in mortification.

A taste of me.

He makes it sound like I’m a four-course meal, like the ones they have in those old novels I censor. I imagine Caden strolling through the East End like a predator on the prowl. Did I run into him in the library? Or maybe he was one of the patrons at the nightclub Ava dragged me to. The thought makes me go hot and cold at the same time.

“Where did you see me? And why—”

“Do I have to feed you myself or are you going to start eating voluntarily?” Caden interrupts me.

This time I detect a slight hint of annoyance. Until this point, my heart has been pounding with fear, but now anger is surging through me. Perhaps because he used the wordvoluntarily.Nothing about all this is voluntary.

I jab the fork so hard into the fennel salad that it scrapes across the plate with a squeak and take a big bite. No one said I have to enjoy this meal. I’m just going to scarf it down.

But I didn’t expect it to taste so good. The flavors positively explode on my tongue.

It’s sweet and salty, sour and spicy all at once. I have to control myself to keep tears from welling up in my eyes. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Caden lick his lips as if he can taste it too.

“It is always a pleasure to make withered taste buds blossom,” he says in a dark voice. He’s closed his eyes. “You humans are so easily enraptured.”

I feel torn between taking another bite and jabbing my fork into his perfect face. Blinking, Caden opens his eyes and looks at me. He leans forward slowly.

“Do you want to know what your sin tastes like?” he whispers close to my ear as he licks his fingers. Middle finger, ring finger, thumb. I can’t take my eyes off his lips.

“No,” I breathe, but I sound anything but determined.

He grins.

“Sweet, with a hint of cinnamon. I could get used to it.”

I stare at him angrily. I don’t want him to get used to it. Undeterred, he sinks back in his chair and waves his hand.

“Eat! Your anger doesn’t taste half as good as you might think, love.”

I keep eating.

Because I don’t have a choice.

Because every bite makes my mouth water, and I don’t want to stop.

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